Post-communist coinage of Ukraine

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Until the end of the First World War, the territory of modern Ukraine was divided between Austria-Hungary and the Russian Empire. During the 19th century the Ukrainians were generally referred to as Ruthenians, but as their national and political consciousness grew, they preferred to call themselves Ukrainians.

During World War I, the Russian and Austro-Hungarian empires started to collapse. From Wikipedia:

During 1917–20, several separate Ukrainian states briefly emerged: the Ukrainian People's Republic, the Hetmanate, the Directorate and the pro-Bolshevik Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (or Soviet Ukraine) successively established territories in the former Russian Empire; while the West Ukrainian People's Republic and the Hutsul Republic emerged briefly in the former Austro-Hungarian territory. However, Poland defeated Western Ukraine in the Polish-Ukrainian War, but failed against the Bolsheviks in an offensive against Kiev.

According to the Peace of Riga concluded between the Soviets and Poland, western Ukraine was officially incorporated into Poland, who in turn recognised the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in March 1919. The war in Ukraine continued for another two years; by 1921, however, most of Ukraine had been taken over by the Soviet Union, while Galicia and Volhynia were incorporated into independent Poland. Ukraine became a founding member of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics or the Soviet Union in December 1922.

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The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in the 1920s. A small part of its eastern territory (seen here in lighter green) was assigned to Russia in 1924.

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In 1939, as a result of the Nazi-Soviet Pact, Poland was divided between the Soviet Union and Germany. Eastern Poland was then divided between Belorussia (now Belarus) and Ukraine.




After the Second World War, the USSR adjusted its new border with Poland only slightly, and Poland was given part of eastern Germany in compensation. The USSR took Koenigsberg from East Prussia and named it Kaliningrad; it is now a Russian exclave.

As you can see on the first map, part of Czechoslovakia also went to Ukraine, but not until 1946, as a result of pressure from Stalin. From Wikipedia:

On June 29 1945, a treaty was signed under between Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union, ceding Carpatho-Ruthenia officially to the Soviet Union. In 1946 the area was forced to became part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, as the Zakarpattia Oblast (Transcarpathian Oblast). After the break-up of the Soviet Union, it became part of independent Ukraine as Zakarpattia Oblast.

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During the war the USSR acquired part of northern and eastern Romania. This was annexed to Ukraine and Soviet Moldavia respectively, and a small part of eastern Soviet Moldavia was reassigned to Ukraine. These territories were retained by the USSR after the war.

Ukraine annexed parts of Bukovina, Bessarabia, and the Hertsa region from Romania.

See also: Bessarabia, Moldavia, Moldova and Transnistria

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During the 1950s, Ukraine received its final territorial gain. From Wikipedia:

Following the death of Stalin in 1953, Nikita Khrushchev became the new leader of the USSR. Having served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Ukrainian SSR in 1938–49, Khrushchev was intimately familiar with the republic; after taking power union-wide, he began to emphasize the friendship between the Ukrainian and Russian nations. In 1954 the Crimea was transferred to the Ukrainian SSR, as a gift from the Russian SFSR.

A large part of Crimea is still ethnically Russian, and nowadays there are occasionally arguments between the Russian and Ukrainian authorities over rights to the use of the Black Sea

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From Wikipedia:

In August 1991 a conservative faction among the Communist leaders of the Soviet Union attempted a coup to remove Mikhail Gorbachev and to restore the Communist party's power. After the attempt failed, on August 24, 1991 the Ukrainian parliament adopted the Act of Independence in which the parliament declared Ukraine as an independent democratic state.

A referendum and the first presidential elections took place on December 1, 1991. That day, more than 90 percent of the Ukrainian people expressed their support for the Act of Independence, and they elected the chairman of the parliament, Leonid Kravchuk to serve as the first President of the country. At the meeting in Brest, Belarus on December 8, followed by Alma Ata meeting on December 21, the leaders of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine, formally dissolved the Soviet Union and formed the Commonwealth of Independent States.


Ukraine today.

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Independent Ukraine adopted the currency of the hryvnia (1 hryvnia = 100 kopiyok) and began minting its first coins in 1992, but these were not issued until 1996.

Below you can see the 1, 2, and 5 kopiyok (the images in this topic are not to scale), with a diameter, respectively, of 16, 17.3 and 24mm. The 2 kopiyok was in aluminium, whilst the 1 and 5 kopiyok were made of steel.

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The 10, 25 and 50 kopiyok coins were made of brass. These coins are 16.3, 20.8 and 23mm in diameter respectively.

The obverse of the coins shows Ukraine's coat of arms, which consists of Saint Volodymyr's trident. The ornamentation on the reverse of the coins looks rather old-fashioned.

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Finally, the hryvnia coin, minted in brass. It is 26mm in diameter. The patterns on the reverse of the coin look more interesting than on the lower denominations, but this is hardly a stylish set, design-wise. Hopefully Ukraine will adopt a more interesting design series in the future.

[Ukrainii Pyat]

One hryvnia coin design has been changed and now has St. Volodomyr on it.  But 1 hrv coins rarely circulate, I have to ask for them in banks or stores and only sometimes will they even let you have them.

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The old one hryvnia was last produced in 2003, and this new one has been issued since 2004. It is a much more attractive design. This is now the standard design, but Ukraine also issues a commemorative version, with a different theme every year. This is common practice in other countries, of course.

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Compare the design on the new hryvnia to this Slovakian 10 korun of 1944. It also depicts an ancient figure holding a model of a church.

[chrisild]

Right, a ruler who had a church built would often be shown (sculpture or painting) holding a church model. And sometimes you find that scene on a coin; here is an example from Germany. -- The man on that 1 hryvnia coin is apparently (had to look that up) Prince Volodymyr. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_the_Great ...

About a month ago, by the way, Ukraine issued a nicely designed "Year of the Bat" 5 hryven (Cu-Ni-Zn) coin. See here.

Christian

[milkshakespeare]

I prefer the 1992 1 grivna to the Vladimir coin... The newer one feels somewhat kitschy.

[Gusev]

From Wikipedia:

In 1954 the Crimea was transferred to the Ukrainian SSR, as a gift from the Russian SFSR.

Ha-Ha.   Do not copy errors from Wikipedia.
Russia did not give anything to Europe?
A good excuse to take back your gift.